


fireflies can't compare to the light in your eyes

by opprimed



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fireflies, First Kiss, Fluff, Love Confessions, M/M, Road Trips, Sunsets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-20
Updated: 2018-08-20
Packaged: 2019-06-30 00:34:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15740496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/opprimed/pseuds/opprimed
Summary: “Let’s take a road trip back to Kansas, they said. It’ll be fun, they said.”“Fun my ass,” thinks Dean. Now he’s stuck in the Impala in the middle of nowhere. With Cas.He and Cas are stuck in a car, with no one around for miles.In which Dean and Castiel spend the night outside, on fields of grass gazing at the stars, and Cas discovers fireflies while Dean discovers something else entirely new.





	fireflies can't compare to the light in your eyes

**Author's Note:**

> short and sweet oneshot where dean and cas discover a lot of things, but only one is an earth shattering revelation.

\---

“making new clichés on our own little tour  
let's ride”

Troye Sivan, for him.

\---

“I knew this was a bad idea! I knew it!”

In the seat next to him, Cas sighs.  
“Dean, this was not a bad idea. We just pulled the short straw. We can call Bobby and tell him to pick us up.”

“Yeah, which wouldn’t be a problem if it weren’t for the fact that there’s no service here! So now we’re stuck in the middle of nowhere with no service and a broken down car. Which I can’t fix, by the way. So yeah, Cas, this was definitely not a bad idea.” Dean snarks at Cas, who looks at him with impassive expression.

“Dean…”  
“I mean, what were you guys thinking? There’s nothing for me back at Kansas.”  
“We just thought it’d be nice if you got to visit, Dean. I’m sorry, I didn’t expect things to turn out like this. I didn’t mean to hurt you in any way either.” Cas spoke softly, blue eyes peering into Dean’s soul.

Dean’s expression softened.  
“It’s… It’s fine, Cas. I know you didn’t mean any of this. It’s just, I mean, I have you, Sam, Bobby, Ellen and Jo back at home, so there’s no need for us to take a 6 hour drive to Kansas only to be met with a fresh steaming pile of nothing. But really, Cas, I appreciate you trying to do this for me. I really do.”

Cas gave Dean one of his signature smiles, the one that was slightly lopsided and was paired with soft, glowing eyes. Dean could feel his stomach churn and cheeks flush. Whenever Cas smiled like that, it was genuine and kind and loving and made Dean feel happy.

“Come on.”

Dean gets out of the car and stretches his back. He loves driving his Baby, but 3 hours is a long time and Dean needs to get up sooner or later. Cas steps onto the road, squinting his eyes and observing the scenery around them. It’s noon and the sun is setting, casting a glow over the seemingly never ending road. There’s no one around for miles and everything is quiet except for the chirps of crickets and the rustling of leaves in the wind. Dean takes a deep breath and thinks for a second that maybe everything wasn’t so bad, considering that they weren’t stuck in a ditch. It was beautiful really, the endless fields of grass and the rays of sunshine reflected across the lake.

Dean looks over at Cas and he smiles at the sight.

Cas was looking at the setting sun, which was vibrant with hues of sunflower yellow and citrus orange and strawberry pink, giving him a golden glow.

But the most remarkable thing is Cas’s expression.

He’s smiling, but not the beautiful lopsided smile, no, Cas is smiling in a way Dean has seen once in his lifetime.

-

He remembers the moment clearly:

It was late, and Dean was walking home from work because he chose to stay extra hours for extra money. It was exhausting and mentally draining, but money was money, and Dean could use it for the rent and actual food. He’s nearly home when it starts raining heavily, but luckily Dean has an umbrella for safekeeping. As he opens his umbrella, he spots a familiar trench coat in the corner of his eye. Dean sighs, but he smiles fondly and walks over to Castiel, who is waiting for the bus. He probably worked extra too, considering Cas was the worst workaholic.

“Hey--Hey! Cas!” Dean yells, and Cas turns in surprise to see Dean, but he smiles.  
“Dean? What are you doing here? Did you work late again?”  
“Pff, like you’re one to talk, Mister Workaholic.”

Cas laughs, and Dean feels shiver run up his spine.

“Well, what do you need, Dean? Or did you just come by to say hello?” Cas teases him with a fond smile.  
“Oh, yeah, I was gonna ask you,” Dean swallows. “Do you wanna come over to my apartment? I heard that the bus left early today.”

“Oh, well, that’d be appreciated, Dean. Thank you.”

Dean smiled and outstretched his arm so that the umbrella would cover the two men as they walked to Dean’s apartment.

“So,” Dean pauses. “Is beer okay?”  
The two had reached the apartment, but they were soaked, even with the umbrella.

Cas nods, taking the beer with a hint of a smile.

They didn’t do anything. It was silent but comfortable, and Dean didn’t want to break the peaceful mood around them.

Then, Castiel stood up and looked through the window.

“Look, it stopped raining.”

Dean walked over to where Cas was standing, and smiled. It had stopped raining, but that wasn’t why he was smiling. The night sky was beautiful; the stars shining bright, and the city lights flashing assortments of fluorescent neon colors.

“Come on.” Dean took Cas’s hand and lead him out to the balcony.

They sat there, on the balcony, looking up at the stars and drinking cheap beer.

“Hey, Dean,” Cas whispered. “Do you see those stars there?” He pointed at several illuminated stars in the sky.

Dean nodded silently, watching Cas’s hands trace the stars.

“That’s the vulpecula constellation, or the fox constellation.”

Dean looked at Cas’s face, and felt his heart swell.

Castiel had the biggest, brightest and cutest smile on. His cheeks were flushed and his pure white teeth showed as he grinned to himself, reciting all of the constellations he knew. Cas faced Dean when he realized Dean had gone silent. He flushed brighter, staring into Dean’s eyes.

On that night, Cas just kept smiling, smiling, smiling and smiling.

And Dean had never felt happier.

-

“Dean? Dean! Are you okay?” Cas walked over to Dean’s side, showing worry on his face.  
“Huh? Oh, yeah, I’m fine Cas. Just spaced out. It’s sorta pretty here, isn’t it?”

Cas laughed softly.

“It is. It really is.”

Dean walked to the trunk of the Impala and took out some beers.

“Beer?”

 

The two sat on top of the car, looking at the now dark sky, sipping on their beers.

“What do we do?” Dean sighed and took a swig of his beer. “Sit here all night?”  
“Sam or Bobby will probably notice that we haven’t called them, and they’ll come to get us.”  
“Yeah, but that could take hours, or even a day. Plus, I can’t believe no one is coming down this road. That’s fucking creepy.”  
“I agree,” said Cas, his voice deep with exhaustion.

“Hey,” Cas murmured, his head buzzing slightly from the beer. “What’s that?”  
Dean turned his head to see what Cas was pointing at and laughed.

“You don’t know what fireflies are? C’mon, let me show you.”

Dean jumped down from the Impala and slowly walked over to the field of grass where several fireflies fluttered about, flickering their lights. He reached down and cupped a firefly into his hand.

“Here,” whispered Dean as he handed the firefly to Cas.

Cas gently cupped the firefly into his hands and gasped, fascinated by the tiny, glowing creature in his hands.

He watched the firefly as it flew away, disappearing into the field.

Dean smiled and began to laugh loudly at Cas’s reaction to fireflies. Cas looked at him, smiling and laughing along with Dean.

“Come here!” yelled Dean, taking Cas’s hand and dragging them both into the field.

They collapsed into the grass but never stopped laughing.

“Oh,---oh! Dean!” Cas whispered into Dean’s ear as he sat up.

Dean looked up, and-

The sound of rustling leaves filled the air as thousands of fireflies emerged from the grass, taking off into the sky, twinkling like stars. The fireflies surrounded Dean and Cas, as if circling the two in a bright light. They were beautiful.

Dean held out his hand and smiled with amusement and fascination as several fireflies landed on his palm. He felt his heart stop when he turned to see what Cas was doing.

Cas was laughing quietly with The Smile while cupping fireflies in his hands. The fireflies reflected a bright, golden glow onto Castiel’s ocean blue eyes, making them even more beautiful than before. Dean let out a sharp breath as Cas faced Dean with a soft smile and flushed cheeks.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” Cas whispered into the night, staring down at the single firefly perched on his index finger.

“Y-Yeah, yeah, they are.”

And Dean just sat there, on the grass, and watched Cas as he played with fireflies. Dean could feel his own cheeks flush and his mouth quirk up to a smile. Cas was so beautiful like this, pure and happy, smiling all the time. Dean wanted to make Castiel smile like that everyday: he wanted to drive Cas to places unknown and show him new things, he wanted to discover exotic foods and places with him, he wanted to take Cas somewhere, anywhere, and make him smile forever. But most of all, Dean wanted to kiss the smile on Cas’s face-

Oh.

Oh.

Ohhhhh.

The realization hit Dean like a wave: hard and sudden at first, then engulfing him.  
Dean was hit with thousands of thoughts of him and Cas eating together, him and Cas sleeping together, him and Cas driving together, him and Cas, him and Cas, him and Cas.

He loved Cas.

Dean Winchester loved Castiel Novak, the smart and sassy nerd who owned a library and didn’t know anything about pop culture; the handsome blue eyed, sex haired trench coat wearing man who was friends with Dean ever since they were born.

Dean loved him. That guy.

The guy who was currently sitting next to him, playing with fireflies.

And wow, was that revelation earth shattering.

Dean felt his heart beat faster as he panicked.  
What would he tell Cas?  
“Oh hey, I’m in love with you, the one person who I’ve been friends with my whole entire life?”

But on the flipside, Dean felt like he would combust if he kept his thoughts to himself.

Dean didn’t want to lose Cas. He would kill himself before let that happen. But he had to say something. And if Cas didn’t accept his feelings, fine.  
Dean just prayed to God that Cas would stay his friend. (or become something more.)

“Cas?”  
“Hmm?”

Castiel’s back was pressed against Dean’s back, and they were both looking up at the sky.

“Can I tell you something?” Dean whispered the words as if he were scared to even have spoken them.  
“Dean, what is it? You know you can tell me anything.” Cas whispered back to him, his face etched with worry and anticipation.  
“I, uh, just gotta tell you this Cas, because I can’t keep it to myself, but please, just promise you’ll hear me out and you won’t leave me.”  
“Dean-”  
“Just promise me, Cas.”

Castiel grew silent and crawled over to Dean so that the two would be face to face.

“Okay.”

Dean took in a deep breath.

“Castiel Novak, I am in love with you. I think I have been, for a long time, I just haven’t ever realized it because I refused to believe it. But I love you. A lot. But not just in a friend way. I love you and I want to be by your side everyday like I always am, but I want to kiss you and wake up in bed with you. I love everything about you; I love your blue eyes, I love your bad taste in clothing, I love your stupid trenchcoat, I love your sex hair, and I really, really love your smile. I- I just, I had to say this. It’s okay if you don’t accept my feelings, Cas, really-”

“Dean. You’re rambling.”  
“Oh, right. I’m sorry.”  
“Don’t apologize. Just stop talking. I want to talk.”  
“...Okay.”

Dean flushed and he felt his heart break a little. Cas probably didn’t accept his feelings. Which isn’t surprising. No one could love him. He’s fucked up, and he doesn’t need someone else to say that to him.

“Dean Winchester, I love you.”

Wait, what?

“I’ve been in love with you since forever. I just didn’t think you loved me back, because I made it obvious. At least, I think I did. But I should’ve realized you’re stupidly oblivious, so I’ll say it now:  
I love you, Dean.”

“Y- You do?” Dean laughed nervously, his hand rubbing the back of his neck.

“I love everything about you; I love your forest green eyes, I love how much you love your family, I love how compassionate you are about the littlest things, I love how good you are to me, and I also really, really love your smile.”

Cas was smiling with his pearly whites again, like that time on the balcony, and that’s when Dean realized he had missed it. He missed how Cas had loved him, from the very beginning.

So he took a risk and leaned in to close the gap between him and Cas.

Dean kissed Cas softly, savoring the taste of his lips, the feel of his chapped lips and the scratch of stubble against stubble.

They pulled apart quickly, silent from shock.

Cas was glowing.  
His smile, his eyes, his skin, everything about Cas was glowing.

Dean leaned into Cas’s shoulder and inhaled the scent of lavender oil and shampoo. Cas gently ran his fingers through Dean’s hair, sighing contentedly.

They fell asleep on the field of grass, hands entwined, surrounded by the soft glow of fireflies and the melodic chirp of crickets.

 

fin.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm so sorry for the sloppy grammar and paragraphs and ohmygosh everything isn't that great but I wanted to post something on here so I hope you guys enjoy it?? Please excuse anything out of place because this is my first time writing Destiel and writing a full finished 2k one shot? Also no major spoilers because I just started s8 lmao :)
> 
> Constructive criticism is welcome! I hope you enjoy <3


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